A midweek afternoon visit to Manchester taking in some amazing art with a pint or two in one or two of the city's pubs that I don't get too very often....
I was in Manchester the other Wednesday afternoon to catch David Hockney's immersive art show Bigger & Closer (Not Smaller & Far Away) which had been getting some very positive reviews over the previous few weeks. The show was on at Factory International, a new venue to me on the former Granada Studios site on Water Street, off Liverpool Road on the far side of Deansgate. And as a bonus, as with my visit earlier in the month, this gave me another opportunity to try out some of the pubs in a part of the city I don't get to very often.
I was running a little late due to a few slight delays on the train over to Manchester. I eventually arrived at Victoria and reckoned that if I got a move on I could fit in a couple of pubs and be able to make it to the 4.30 show that was the time on my ticket. It was a cold grey afternoon as I headed past Chethams Music School and the Cathedral on my way to Deansgate. I was thinking of calling at the Old Nags Head on Jackson Row which I had not been in for years, which as it is included in the local bible, ie. Matthew Curtis's excellent book Manchester's Best Beer Pubs and Bars I felt was worth a re-visit. However as I made my way along an attractive young lady stopped me and asked me that age-old question. "Who's your energy provider?" "I'm in a rush", I said hurriedly, and before she could say something along the lines of "we could save you over £150 a year" I marched off up the street. The halt in my progress down Deansgate had thrown me slightly and I completely forgot where I had been planning to go, so I turned up John Dalton Street in search of a pub who's name I had forgotten, and which I hadn't been in for several years.
I remembered when I spotted the Ape & Apple just a little further up on the other side of the road. This is one a few pubs in the city centre run by local brewers Joseph Holts. It looks like has been around for years, but in actual fact was only converted into a pub during the late 1990's, having been a bank in its previous life. It wasn't too busy when I walked in, with just a few people sat around an attractively-furnished room with wood panelling and screens as befits its former existence, with pictures of old Manchester on the walls giving it a local touch. There is also a function room upstairs where they host Manchester's longest-running comedy club. The two staff behind the bar were chatting happily as I approached but stopped and both greeted me cheerfully and readied themselves to serve. I ordered a pint of Holts bitter, the young lady quicker off the mark than her male colleague. I found a seat not far from one of the TV screens which was showing England heading towards imminent defeat against India in the first T20 international in Chennai. My beer was pretty much standard Holts, consistent without being stunning (NBSS 3). I checked on Google Maps for the next pub and the venue, and reckoned I should be thinking about making a move. I took a large glug of my pint as India hit another 6, and then I spotted the lad from behind the bar coming towards me, full pint in hand. "I've just pulled this by mistake and I noticed your glass was getting empty, so you can have it for free." I thanked him but said I was having to go as I had an appointment to get to. What a shame, but the gesture was very much appreciated. He wandered off and the glass was duly accepted by a table of 3 blokes at the other side of the room. I had enjoyed my brief and unscheduled visit here, and as I left the friendly two behind the bar said they looked forward to seeing me again.
I headed back down on to Deansgate where I marched along towards Liverpool Road, on which the next pub on my list was situated. Across the way I passed the former Great Northern Railway warehouse building, with the incredibly long row of mainly shops, offices, and eateries housed in the former Deansgate Goods Station, whilst at the end of the row stands the much more-recently built 47-storey, 554ft (169 metres) high distinctively-designed Beetham Tower, the tallest building in Manchester which stands sentinel over the city, and can be seen for miles around.
I had more or less reached the end of Deansgate when I came to the junction with Liverpool Road, which has the campus of the Manchester Science and Industry Museum off to one side. My focus though was having a pint at Cask, a long-standing entry in the CAMRA Good Beer Guide but not a place I had been to for quite a few years, although I have been to their sister pub in Ancoats more recently.
Sitting proudly on the corner of Barton Street and Liverpool Road, the pub has a distinctive blue-painted exterior with mullioned windows. Before it became a pub, Cask was a motor bike shop and before that a weaver's cottage in what is one of the most historic parts of the city, with Roman remains close by as well as part of the city's Victorian canal network. Inside, the bar was straight in front of me as I walked in through the distinctive double doors into a fairly small room which leads to a larger one beyond. There were 4 hand pumps on the bar, with a couple from Yorkshire amongst them so I went for a pint of Alchemist from long-established Rochdale brewers, Pictish, whose beers I had not had in a while. I found a corner table across from the bar to sit with my beer, which was refreshing and well looked after (NBSS 3.5). Despite the name Cask is not the only type of beer on here; there are several beers on tap and plenty of Belgian and other Continental beers in bottle. The vibe here was very civilised, but friendly, and when I asked for directions to Factory International whilst the lady behind the bar wasn't entirely sure she enlisted a regular who was able to help. All in all, another great pub just off from Manchester city centre that is well worth a visit.
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| Cask, Liverpool Road, Manchester |
And so on to the show. It was about 10 minutes walk to the entrance of Factory International, where I joined a queue in a busy entrance hall for the 4.30 show. David Hockney, the Bradford-born artist who has spent a lot of his life in California where he has been able to take advantage of the clear natural light. Many of his paintings are in bright colours with vivid blue skies a feature. Over the years he began to put together collages, took up photography, and painted on his I-Pad. These elements were all brought together to stunning effect in an immersive show which projected his works on to the four walls of a huge room, with music, comments, and explanations narrated by Hockney interspersed with videos such as one where the artist is driving up into the Californian mountains. It all came together as a fascinating 52-minute portrait and showcase of one of the world's leading artists.
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| A little David Hockney on a large screen |
I left the venue and headed off in search of a beer. This part of the city is not an area I have visited often in recent years so my geography is not as good as other areas. But eventually I made it through to Bridge Street where waiting for me was Gas Lamp, which is situated just before the bridge over the Irwell, across which lies the tantalising prospect of Salford. The entrance is next door to a acupuncture clinic, with the bar, which the sign above the stairs describes as a Subterranean Drinking Den, situated beneath. White tiles line the walls as you walk down a relatively steep well-worn flight of stone steps. The entrance to the bar is situated on the right as you hop off the last step. I walked in, a wooden bar at the end of the room with tightly-packed shelves of spirits on the bar back. The white tiled theme is maintained on the walls in here, which always makes me think of a butcher's shop, but whilst this suggests it might be a bit clinical and lack any warmth or atmosphere, it is definitely not the case. This evening it was busy and lively with the after-work crowd, with all the tables in the main bar taken and in the room at the back down a short corridor, where I sat on one of the stools once I had got served. I'd gone for a pint of Tarquell, a 3.4% pale golden session bitter from hosts Pomona Island, which was very enjoyable and the best beer of the day so far (NBSS 3.5).
I finished my pint and headed back up to Deansgate, and then up John Dalton Street passing the Ape & Apple from earlier in the day. I crossed over Cross Street and then cut up Chapel Walks. I was thinking of calling in North Westward Ho!, Pomona Island's flagship city centre pub, just around the corner from a true Manchester icon, Sam's Chop House. However, when I walked up the steps to go in, the place seemed to be super-busy so I instead carried on past the boarded-off building works to Brown Street, on which lies the always-excellent Cafe Beermoth.
It wasn't too busy here, and I managed to get served fairly quickly. I went for a pint of Golden Fields of Green from Pentrich, which as the blurb says is "A light and easy drinking traditional golden ale, modestly hopped with Simcoe hops. Gentle citrus fruit flavours pair off beautifully with the moderate bitterness to make for a super easy drinking and sessionable beer." It was 4% ABV and maintained the high standard I have come to expect from Pentrich and ended up as the best beer of the day (NBSS 3.5). I sat at one of the tables at the Market Street end of the bar and watched people coming and going as a quality soundtrack that I've come to expect here played through the speakers. I always enjoy my visits here to what is one of the best places to get good beer on both cask and keg in the city centre.
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| Cafe Beermoth |
Time was moving on so I made off for Victoria Station only to find out that my train was delayed, which gave me time for a final drink that I had not been expecting. So I made my way into the Victoria Tap where there was Northern Soul playing through the speakers, which made my choice of Soul Boy from Wigan Brewhouse off the hand pumps rather appropriate. The brewery's beers likewise, according their record label type pump clips, are Brewed with Northern Soul. My beer was an easy drinking 4.3% session pale golden beer brewed with quadruple American hops (NBSS 3). According to the display within the bar, my train was now due to leave in 10 minutes from Platform 4, so I finished my beer, took my glass back to the bar, bade farewell to the Northern Soul-loving barman, and headed out on to the concourse. I walked through the ticket gates and up the stairs and then down on to the platform as the train arrived. And as the train pulled out of the station I reflected on a great afternoon of art and beer in some different pubs to the usual. A different perspective indeed....
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